


Gotham Tournament: King of Fighters

by Hyper_Nexus



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, King of Fighters
Genre: F/M, Harems, Organized Crime, Threesome - F/F/M, Tournaments
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-06-30
Packaged: 2019-05-31 01:51:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 18,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15109331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hyper_Nexus/pseuds/Hyper_Nexus
Summary: While a seemingly reformed Penguin hosts the new KoF tournament in Gotham, Batman investigates the murder of a renowned martial artist while also dealing with a crime lord from South Town who plans to make his mark in Gotham.





	1. The Iceberg Grande

**Author's Note:**

> The setting takes place a year following events LOOSELY based on the NESTS saga (KoF '99-2001) as well a combination of various story elements from other games and media like the Fatal Fury OVAs, KoF Destiny and KoF Kyo. It's best to just roll with it because let's be honest, KoF continuity makes almost no sense anyway.
> 
> This particular version of the DCU isn't exactly based on any animated, live action or comics continuity but it's my own self-contained interpretation, So some characters and events might be depicted a little differently.
> 
> Batman and all related characters are owned by DC Entertainment, King of Fighters and all related characters are owned by SNK

 

It's a scene Jim Gordon's all too familiar with: police tape, camera flashes, Bullock's ranting into his phone and of course a body bag. A panicked 911 call from one of the staff members of Zanac Cyber Securities brought them to the adjacent parking lot. There was a lot of damage including dented cars and scorch marks and small blood splatters; it looked it there was a hell of a fight.

"No good. Bastard's not coming to the phone and that asshole assistant of his still ain't co-operating." grunted Bullock after hanging up.

Gordon frowned. From what they know, Zanac is currently owned by a recluse named Alexander Soliani who apparently used to run a sister concern in Florida but is right now housed in a private villa in Gotham after he dissolved it last year. The company staff they questioned mentioned that none of them aside from the manager in charge had actually met Soliani and only thing they've learned out of him was useless and vague info about the man's eccentric lifestyle. Gordon found it suspicious that the man refused to meet with them and give a statement despite the security breach and murder occurring at his own company.

"Never mind him. Was there anything on the security feed?" Gordon asked.

Bullock gave a weak exasperated half laugh.

"What security feed? Whoever this guy was, he disabled half the cameras and left us with jack-shit! My hunch says it's probably an inside job and the guy did this poor shmuck in for being at the wrong place at the wrong time."

Gordon half listened when he noticed high above him, perched on the corner of a neighboring building was a black shadow shaped like a frightening demon with its pointed horns, a ghostly shroud flowing from its sides in the wind with pointed ends like tendrils aching to grasp its prey and the glowing white eyes that seemed to pierce the night. Gordon had expected him to show up a little later but his presence was still appreciated. Gordon coughed to get Bullock's attention.

"I'm going to need some space."

Bullock raised a brow and then looked towards the Commissioner's gaze and clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"You gotta be kidding me..." he grunted.

Bullock growled in exasperation, he was not a big fan of the Commissioner's unspoken policy to collaborate with a masked vigilante nor the way GCPD had to bend over backwards to accommodate his ways but he begrudgingly admitted that Gordon and the Bat's successful track record together spoke for itself. Bullock clapped to get the attention of everyone, minus Gordon, working at the scene.

"Alright gang, take five."

The CSIs paused from their work and simply looked back in confusion, prompting Bullock to bark at them.

"What!? Ya deaf!? Scram! Smoke if ya got'em!"

It took a while for Bullock to have the area cleared and left Gordon alone at the crime scene but soon the familiar black shadow floated down next to him.

"No doubt you overhead most of it already." said Gordon.

Batman said nothing and walked towards where the fight had taken place, making sure to avoid the areas marked as evidence. The Dark Knight's analytical mind was already at work observing details with every dent and damage on the cars, the scruff marks on the floor and the directions of the small blood splatter.

"Was anything reported missing?" he asked.

Gordon sighed and placed his hands into his trench coat pockets.

"Physically, no. The staff aren't reporting anything officially but they did say that some sensitive data might have been compromised. I guess it can't be good for a Cybersecurity business when word gets out that some guy broke in and manually copied some files. Honestly, the specifics are greek to me. Barbara knows more about this hacking and firewall stuff than I do."

While Gordon spoke, Batman knelt next to the larger pool of blood that was near to the chalk outline, he guessed it was likely the result after the victim received his deathblow. Something caught his eye and he noticed just a foot away from the blood pool, behind one of the tires of the parked cars was a medium sized thick residue of melted rubber. One could mistake that it came from the tire itself but Batman felt it was something else entirely. The Commissioner didn't seem to notice him collect the residue with an instrument and pocket it in one of his belt pouches, he made a mental note to himself to let Jim know if he found anything of importance after he analyzed it back at the cave. At the Commissioner's mention of Barbara, Batman also made a mental note to request assistance from her as her expertise might be useful, ironically Jim had no idea she was one of his partners along with Dick. Batman then walked back towards the body bag.

"And him?"

Gordon bent down and unzipped it to reveal the victim's face and torso. He was a well built young man with long blond hair that was slicked back.

"The strangest wrinkle in this case...Meet Andy Bogard."

"The martial artist!?" asked a surprised Batman.

Batman never really paid attention or followed the King of Fighters tournaments but since their popularity grew, the fighting teams who participated had attained a celebrity-like status despite some of them having private lives. Even in Gotham, whether one cared about martial arts or not, there weren't many who didn't know about these fighters.

"Believe me, we were as surprised as you. The M.E. says that cause of death was internal hemorrhaging from blunt force trauma to the chest, so we know he died from the fight. What we don't know is what was he doing here in Gotham, and this place. Bullock thinks he was just a bystander."

Batman had already taken a knee next to the corpse, examining every bruise and cut on the poor man's upper body with narrowed eyes.

"Or maybe he knew his killer."

"How'd you figure?" asked Gordon.

"Bogard is an expert on Koppouken, an aggressive and offensive fighting style but the bruises on his forearms seem to indicate that he was fighting defensively."

"Poor bastard must've been overwhelmed."

"Or he was stalling. Maybe..."

"He was trying to reason with him! He knew who the thief was so he came here trying to stop him!" exclaimed Gordon with realization.

Batman stood up and 'hmmed' to himself. So far all they got to go on were theories and unless they find concrete evidence, theories will be all they have. Batman turned and began to walk away, preparing his grappling gun for his exit.

"I'll need a copy of the examiner's report. We'll catch him, Jim. Just make sure your men are careful when they deal with whoever this person is."

"You think he's THAT dangerous, huh?" Gordon called after him.

Batman looked back.

"The Bogard brothers are master martial artists who have ranked high in all the tournaments they've participated in. There aren't many people who can take down Andy Bogard."

And with that, the Dark Knight shot off his grappling hook and took off into the night.

* * *

"Now THIS is a place to party!" proclaimed Benimaru Nikaido with his arms thrown wide.

The proud young millionaire model had to admit that from what he had seen from their personal tour so far, the Iceberg Grande Resort and Casino was indeed impressive. Located in Gotham's fashion district, it boasted over 700 rooms including several 2000 square feet suites, equipped with top of the line luxury amenities and a large casino on the ground floor. The tower's most interesting feature were the two fighting arenas: one near the top floor and one on the roof, they were built by their host specifically for the upcoming tournament. However all that wasn't what impressed Nikaido, rather it was the venue located next to the casino.

"Whooooa! Check out the size of that pool!" said Shingo Yabuki who had been acting like an excited kid since they touched down in Gotham.

Just next to the casino was a whole section of the building dedicated as a venue for the nightlife, a nightclub with the huge dance floor and stage surrounded by ten high-backed booths and an upper VIP level with six skyboxes for overlooking the action below, there was also an open air area where the large swimming pool Shingo saw was located. This was where the trio of Team Japan were standing, led here by their host. The man was portly with an unusual beak like nose, wearing an Edwardian style suit complete with a Top hat, a monocle and an umbrella cane; His name was Oswald Cobblepot.

"I'm glad you both like it. Believe me, it'll be much more lively come the opening party."

At that moment, Cobblepot was interrupted by a loud drawn out yawn which caused him to chomp down on the cigarette holder in mouth in annoyance. This person had been yawning throughout the entire tour and it was beginning to get on Cobblepot's nerves. The person was Kyo Kusanagi, heir to the Kusanagi Clan and argumentatively the most renowned of the KoF fighters.

"Which is more than I can say about your friend here." Cobblepot grumbled, a visible vein throbbed on his head.

Shingo chuckled dismissively, he knew that his idol was probably bored out of his mind.

"Eh-hehe, Don't mind Kyo-san, he's probably still shaking off the jetlag."

Benimaru interjected.

"And he doesn't appreciate the 'finer things in life' like me. By the way Mister Cobblepot, I've been meaning to ask you something..."

Benimaru fished out the envelope which contained their invitation letter. Unlike the previous letters which had a red 'R' seal, this one had a blue 'C' seal.

"I was a bit surprised to hear that you would be the one to host this year's tournament in Gotham City but at the same time, there's been an unfortunate trend with the King of Fighters tournaments of being fronted by people with...well, let's just say 'dubious nature' and I can't help but wonder..."

"This is about my criminal past, is that it?" Cobblepot interrupted.

This caught Shingo's attention while Kyo walked around nonchalantly, it may have appeared that the former KoF champion didn't care but he was actually listening to what their host had to say.

"Fair enough. First let me say that yes, I was involved in some shady dealings when I was running the Ice Berg lounge, back when people 'affectionately' called me the Penguin."

Cobblepot chuckled humorously at this but the three fighters could sense the disdain he had for that nickname. Their host paced around them as he made his speech as if he practiced and recited it over and over before.

"But that was in the past. I've been given a second chance after my key testimony put Harvey Dent and Roman Silas away and I haven't squandered it. I realized then that crime is only about short term gains and benefits no one. The Ice Berg Grande, This year's tournament and my contributions to the South Town relief effort has all been my endeavors to make a more positive impact on society."

He took a drag on his cigarette holder before turning to Beni with a grin.

"You can see my papers if you want, Mister Nikaido. You will see that I've been legit for the past two years now."

Benimaru wasn't sure what to say to that but he remained unconvinced.

"Maybe so but you can't blame us for having dou..."

Beni stopped talking when he noticed one of Cobblepot's lady assistants approach them. She was a curvy woman with a dark mocha coffee complexion wearing a tight fitting skirt suit and black glasses, the trio remembered her name was Candy. Immediately Beni switched his demeanor to his usual flirty one while flipping his long hair.

"...erm, doubts that you didn't employ this charming Goddess from the heavens itself!" finished Beni in a poetic sing-song voice.

Kyo rolled his eyes while Shingo scratched his head in confusion. Candy didn't seem to be paying any attention to Benimaru's advances and only approached Cobblepot but Beni did notice that for a brief moment, she flashed a look at Kyo.

"Sorry to bother you, Sir. But a Mister Shinzan is here to see you."

"Shinzan? Oh, THAT Shinzan!" the host said in realization.

Cobblepot linked his arm around Candy's, turned towards the trio and tipped his hat at them.

"Well gentleman, this is where I take my leave. Please do enjoy your stay here, there's a bar at the corner over there so feel free to help yourself to some drinks. I'll be seeing you all this week."

Before the host could leave, Benimaru called after him with a point of his finger.

"Oi Cobblepot! Don't forget my request!"

"Yes Mister Nikaido, I remember. You wish to challenge Bruce Wayne. Although he agreed to be a sponsor, he has not responded to any of the invitations I sent him. Are you sure HE is a capable fighter?" asked Cobblepot.

"Oh, he's capable alright. But not against me!" said Beni with a pumped fist.

Oswald couldn't help his skepticism, he had known Wayne as an entitled prick who had everything that the Cobblepot family deserved but he never envisioned him as a martial artist and always thought of him as a cowardly opportunist.

"I see. Well, he promised to attend this week's party so maybe you'll get your chance sooner than you think. Till then."

With that the host and his lady assistant left the trio to themselves.

"What do you think, Kyo-san? You think Cobblepot's bad news?" asked Shingo.

Shingo couldn't help but have an internal fanboy moment seeing Kyo fold his arms, close his eyes and mull over the question; he felt his idol looked so cool being in charge like that.

"There's definitely something fishy about him but we can't know for sure right now. Best we just play it cool for now and act according to the situation like we always do."

Kyo turned to Benimaru with a stern look.

"So how about we don't do anything stupid like ask the villain if he is a villain, okay 'Beni-kun'?" Kyo said with condescension.

Beni reeled back but then recovered and laughed while flipping his hair.

"My dear Kyo, sometimes the direct approach works best, didn't they teach that in your school?"

"Sh-shut up! You know I'm not in school anymore!"

"Oh yeah, you dropped out recently right? Sorry, the running gag's hard to keep track of sometimes."

Kyo simply frowned and grumbled but then he noticed that Shingo was about to speak up, in that moment he had a feeling what was going to come out of that boy's mouth but he was too late to stop him.

"It's not all bad, Beni-san. I've been helping Kyo-san with his studies and he's taken a part time job at a convenience store as a-"

"Idiot! I told you to keep that to yourself!" hissed Kyo as he comically bonked Shingo on the head.

Benimaru's jaw dropped and he took a step back, being flabbergasted.

"W-wait, WHAT!? When did all this happen? What part time job!?"

"None of your damn business!" snapped Kyo.

"He's in sales..." whimpered out Shingo while nursing his head, only to be bonked by Kyo again.

This new information was too much for Benimaru, the mental image of Shingo sitting down and tutoring a disgruntled Kyo as well of the image of Kyo wearing some tacky store uniform while minding the cash register popped into his mind and he couldn't help but guffaw at it.

"Oh my, that's too much! The running gag may have died, but Kyo the sales clerk? That's never going to get old!"

Kyo didn't seem effected by that remark and instead gave a cocky grin and raised his fist which ignited in flames, a trait of the Kusanagi clan. His competitive spirit was also ignited and his blood ran wild.

"I told you before, Nikaido: none of that matters because at the end of the day, I can still whoop your ass! Need a reminder? How about a go right here and now?"

Beni grinned in response. With electricity coursing through his arms, he ran his fingers through his long hair and made them stand upright, giving him his trademark hair style, and then got into a fighting stance.

"Anytime and anywhere, Kyo!"

The two fighters were getting fired up but between them, Shingo sweated and sheepishly twiddled his fingers.

"Err, guys? Are you sure you want to do this here? We might break something and Cobblepot'll scold us." he chuckled nervously.

Before anything could progress, Kyo's phone sounded off and interrupted their moment. When Kyo fished out his phone and checked the caller ID, he grimaced.

"Aw shit, I forgot to call Yuki! Hold on, I need to take this."

Beni and Shingo blinked as Kyo walked off, talking into his phone with a tone more pleasant than what they were accustomed to.

It was then when Benimaru realized the true reason behind Kyo's change in lifestyle. Kyo might have been willing to spend the rest of his adult life in high school but not Yuki who was the only reason he attended school in the first place. Since the incident with NESTS, Kyo had made a bigger effort with their relationship as he feared that his long absences might've made her drift away. Beni didn't know the full details but he figured that this was Kyo's attempt at taking some responsibilities in life...for her, to show he could change. Was it change for the better? Beni didn't know the answer but as a romantic at heart, he couldn't help but be a little proud of his friend.

"So Beauty has finally tamed the Beast, eh?" Beni murmured with a smile while shaking his head.

"Hmm? You said something, Beni-san?" asked Shingo.

"Nothing. Come, let's check out that bar Cobblepot's mentioned."

"Um, I don't think I'm old enough to..."

Before Shingo could say anything, he found himself being dragged towards the mentioned bar counter. The wide counter itself was lit up with a myriad of colors and the lighting made the bottles on display look like gemstones. Although the club was currently closed, the ambient glow from the bar gave a pleasant atmosphere. Surprisingly, there was someone tending the counter with her back facing the approaching me who immediately recognized her when she turned around.

"Miss King! Fancy meeting you here. How are those beautiful, taut, and exquisitely lethal legs of yours doing today?"

The short haired blonde woman simply known as "King" exuded a sense of class. She was wearing a white shirt, black bow tie, teal earrings and matching burgundy waistcoat/pants set. The woman gave an exasperated sigh and scowled at the male model.

"I see you haven't changed one bit, Nikaido." she said icily.

"Hi King-sama! What are you doing here?" waved Shingo cheerfully.

King gave a small friendly smile to Shingo.

"Hello to you too, Shingo. As for why I'm here...well, This is where I work now."

She said this with a halfhearted shrugged. Beni was actually surprised by her current predicament.

"What? But why? I thought you were running a bar back in South Town."

King sighed and sadly shook her head.

"You mean 'Illusion'? It's no more now, it got destroyed by that cannon along with most of the city. The worst part was that I didn't even have the place insured. I still need to pay for my little brother's medical bills so I came to Gotham hoping to get a fresh start. Mr. Cobblepot somehow found me and offered me a job and so...here I am." she finished with a gesture towards her surroundings.

Both Beni and Shingo couldn't help but feel sorry for her, they knew she worked hard on building that bar but they also knew she was too proud to accept any financial help.

"So does that mean you're not in the Tournament this time?" asked Shingo.

"Nope and unless Mr. Cobblepot feels I'm not better off serving patrons, it'll probably stay that way."

"That's too bad, I'll miss those glorious kicks of yours." said Beni, prompting a glare from King.

"Keep it up, Nikaido and I'll give you a demo right here. By the way, I assume you're both here with Kyo. Is this your whole team? I thought Goro Daimon would be with you."

Beni simply waved his hand and blew a 'pish' in dismissal.

"Oh THAT guy! Apparently, he's too busy training some new apprentices to join with his old friends. But whatever, we don't need him. Me, Shingo and Kyo are enough to take on anyone. Heck, I alone can take on most of them: Ryo, Iori, Terry, Bruce Wayne...bring 'em all on!"

Shingo couldn't help but give a wry smile, knowing full well that Beni was a little crestfallen that Goro couldn't join them. The three of them; Kyo, Beni and Goro were the dream team afterall. Beni's little trash talk also reminded Shingo that there was something that he curious about.

"Why are you so fixated on this Wayne guy, Beni-san?"

King's eyes lit up realization.

"Wait a minute, are we talking about THE Bruce Wayne? As in the billionaire playboy of Gotham? He sounds like someone you would get along with. And do you even know if he can fight?"

Benimaru nodded.

"It seems so. Apparently Robert Garcia and him are old friends and I've heard from Garcia that they had a sparring match and he was beaten by him."

"He beat Robert!?"

King knew both Robert Garcia and Ryo Sakazaki personally and was aware of their mastery of Kyokugenryu Karate. Beating either of them was no small feat and it was more unbelievable that it was accomplished by this supposed spoilt, carefree, man-slut!

"And maybe you're right. Maybe I would've gotten along with him. But then this happened..."

Beni pulled out a rolled up magazine from his jacket pockets and unfurled it on the bar counter. King and Shingo could see the man in question featured in the front cover, posed in a crisp suit. King admitted to herself that he was definitely good looking; dark hair, blue eyes, square jawline but not looking too rugged nor boyish. Positioned close to the photo was the main cover line: 'BRUCE WAYNE: WORLD'S SEXIEST BILLIONAIRE!'.

"THAT should have ME on the cover! Not him!" Benimaru declared.

Shingo scratched his head in confusion while King palmed her face with a groan.

_"Of course this all had something to do with his ego, of course!"_ she thought.

Elsewhere in the club, Kyo was still engaged in his phone call with Yuki. The conversation between them had been mostly casual but then Kyo began to feel awkward as his girlfriend from the other end of the line began veer their conversation towards an uncomfortably romantic territory.

"Idiot, stop saying stuff like that!" he said with a grimace, listening to her giggle at his reaction.

Deciding that her boyfriend had enough, Yuki decided to let him go for today and cheerfully wished him goodbye.

"Right, I'll talk to you later...loveyoutoo." Kyo finished that last bit with haste and disconnected.

"Aw, That's so cute! Never thought I'd see Kyo Kusanagi whipped like a pathetic burro!"

The voice came from behind him, an annoying voice he was well familiar with and hadn't heard in a long time. With his teeth grit and his fists ignited, he spun around ready to attack.

"YOU!" he growled.

The voice belonged to a young woman of average height who had chin length platinum hair and a notably large breasts. She was wearing what looked like a combination between a black motorcycle jacket and a top with complimentary gloves, hot pants with tights that exposes her inner thighs and cowboy boots.

"Oh? you remember me?" she asked pointing to herself.

"Damn right I remember you! You're that NESTS bitch!"

She angrily pouted and stomped her feet like a little girl.

"It's Angel! Not 'NESTS bitch', pendejo! Man, your clone was a lot nicer than you!"

Kyo remembered whom she referred to. When Kyo was captured by the NESTS syndicate, they used his DNA to create a vast number of clones. This person in particular was their 'perfected' nine thousand nine hundred and ninety ninth named appropriately 'K9999'.

"Where is that guy? Is he here with you!?"

Angel simply shrugged.

"No clue. I was just wandering around bored outa my mind when I heard you and your gal-pal making kissy faces over the phone. Muwah! Muwah!"

She teased while making obnoxious kissing noises which further aggravated Kyo.

"Shut it! I don't know what you're up to but I'm going to burn you to a crisp!"

The lantina gave a playful grin and stretched.

"Oooooh, sounds hot!" She quickly then changed her demeanor and stated matter-of-factly "That's supposed to be a pun by the way. Get it? Burn? Hot?"

Kyo palmed his face, feeling the woman was getting more annoying as she spoke. Angel then let out a breath in disappointment.

"But I'm on the clock and Mister Cobblepot told me strictly no rough-housing within resort premises."

She explained with a wag of a finger at each of the last six words as if she was reciting a stern lecture.

"Wait, you WORK here!?" Kyo asked in disbelief.

"Well duh! Me and Kingy joined up around the same day. In fact, here she is right now!" she said pointing behind him.

Kyo turned to see that there wasn't anyone there and when he realized his mistake, he spun back to see that Angel had disappeared.

"Grr! Oldest trick in the book!" he spat.

Kyo let out breath knowing there wasn't much he could do about her right now and decided that he along with Beni and Shingo would deal with her if she becomes a problem to them later. He soon found his two teammates at the Bar corner of the club and immediately noticed King but just as he was about to greet her, Beni turned towards him. The male model looked like he had just gotten off the phone with someone as the device was still in his hand, his face was surprisingly serious and grim.

"We need to talk." was all he said.

Kyo and Shingo glanced at each other, Beni was usually the most laid back of the group and to see him like this meant that something had happened. The three of them then made their exit, with only Shingo giving King a short goodbye wave.

When King focused her attention on cleaning the glasses, a pair of hands suddenly shot out from behind her and groped her breasts!

"Sneak attack!" chirped Angel.

"What are you doing!?" hissed King with a blush on her cheeks.

Angel released her hold and casually slung an arm around the embarrassed barmaid who still couldn't figure out how the latina managed to sneak behind the bar counter.

"Aw lighten up, Kingy! What's a little touchy-touchy between friends?"

King scowled at the woman with irritation.

"I don't recall ever saying I was your friend! Go bother someone else!"

Angel released her co-worker's shoulder and jump to the other side of the counter.

"Yeah well, It was between you, Candy or Tracey. Candy's kinda cool but has her head in the clouds and Tracey's a snore-fest of a bitch! So I figure since you and I sorta know each other and are going to be working in the same place, we might as well try and get along."

In a continuous motion, Angel plopped on one of the stools and spun herself around like a kid before coming to a stop and resting her elbows on the table.

"Besides, you make one helluva Paloma. Speaking of which...Hit me, Cantinera!" she requested with a pat on the table.

King sighed again for the umpteenth time today and figured she'd better give the woman what she wants. While fixing her drink, she thought about what Beni said about Robert and from that train of thought she began to wonder about how Yuri was doing as well as a certain other Karate expert.

* * *

The dojo's long age was apparent. Some of the training equipment has fallen into disrepair, the furnishings were becoming undone and there was a musty smell that wouldn't go away. Still, the young man wearing an orange gi with a black under shirt swept away the insistent coat of dust on the floor. After a while he stopped and exhaled, his blonde hair which he inherited from his mother getting damp with sweat, it would seem for Ryo Sakazaki that the upkeep of his father's old Dojo was just as taxing as his training regime.

It had been over a month since he'd come to Japan. He wasn't sure if it had been the best idea but since the disaster in South Town, he was left with little options. His father was roaming around the world being Mr. Karate and his sister Yuri was now with Robert. He was happy for them, Really, but being the overprotective brother that he is made letting her go hard and left him with a void in his heart. Lately however, that void has been slowly closing.

"Sakazaki!" a young girl's voice called out.

Ryo chuckled. She was right on time, like clockwork. Ever since she found out where he was staying, this had become a routine of theirs; one which annoyed him at first but he later became accustomed to it.

He turned around to see Kasumi Todoh, a young girl with shoulder length dark blue hair which she decided to let down today, she was dressed in her usual navy Hakama and white Gi, separated by a red waist cloth, as well as the blue guards on her forearms and white Tabi on her feet.

"I've come to avenge my father's honor! Prepare yourself, Sakazaki!"

Ryo shook his head with a smile.

"Don't you think it's about time you changed your intro?"

The young Kubodo girl huffed.

"Enough talk! Are we doing this, or what?"

After letting go of the broom, Ryo approached her till he was of appropriate distance and then took up his stance.

"Alright, let's see how much you've improved."

Their session lasted almost twenty minutes this time. During the period of them exchanging blows and kicks, Ryo admitted that he enjoyed sparring with her even though Kasumi claims it's not sparring and she's fighting for keeps. Her strategy normally involves baiting and countering and through fighting him over and over, she was slowly becoming a master at reading his moves and reacting. Ryo personally liked it because it forced him to think outside box and in the end, he beat her own game; all it took was a Jodan Uke to catch her off guard and a throw to flip her hard on her back.

Kasumi panted while lying there, feeling embarrassed that she was beaten by such basic techniques. Ryo hovered above her and lowered a hand to help her up.

"I'm impressed. Your reaction has become much better though you need to work more on your foot work. With improved mobility, you should be able to avoid surprise situations."

Kasumi frowned, swatted his hand away and helped herself up. Although she was acting defiant, Ryo could've sworn he saw her cheeks tinged with red.

"I don't need you to patronize me, Sakazaki! I swear the next time you will face a different outcome!"

"So same time tomorrow?" Ryo nonchalantly asked.

Kasumi gave a loud "hmph!" and began to march out of the dojo when Ryo called out.

"Wait."

After the girl turned to look at him with an irritated expression, Ryo scratched his hair sheepishly.

"Do you want to have something to eat? The thing is, I ordered some grub earlier and they kinda messed up my order so now I have way too much food without anyone to share it with."

Kasumi's eyes widened and a slight blush graced her cheeks. She looked at him and could see that he seemed unaware of the implications behind such a request. Still, she quickly composed herself and held on to her defiant attitude.

"T-Trying to poison me, huh? Nice try but such tricks won't work on-"

A certain loud growl conveniently interrupted her, halting her speech and making her face bright red in embarrassment. It took a lot of willpower for Ryo to stifle his laugh because the look on her face was just priceless.

"I'll go get the food."

"I didn't say I was joining you!" she protested.

Before she knew it, the two of them were seated on the threshold/engawa of the building and eating from the Bento boxes in hand. After a period of silence, Ryo engaged in some small talk with her to which she responded with simple answers at first but then began to open up a little. Ryo glanced at Kasumi as she nibbled on her food and admitted to himself that she had grown well since he first met her three years ago, when she used to use that pocket dictionary in attempts to speak english. Although she was still fixated on finding and avenging her father, she was dedicated to improving her combat skills and it showed. Not only had she come to a point where she could effectively parry his Koh-Oh Ken with her Kasane Ate, she also figured out a way to counter his Zansetsuken and his Ryuko Ranbu but hasn't properly refined it yet.

Kasumi continued to eat until she caught him looking at her.

"What?" she asked irritably.

"Nothing. By the way, there was something I was supposed to give you."

Ryo held out a long strip of red cloth which had a long white band at the center. Kasumi looked at it curiously until it occurred to her what it and she almost jumped from her astonishment.

"My old headband!"

"Don't you remember? Back when we first met? You gave me this to as proof that you'll fight me again, to take it back."

Kasumi was stunned as memories from that day returned to her. She had been so used to challenging him that everything before seemed like a blur; like she had been doing this all her life, like she'd known him all her life.

"Y-You've kept it this whole time? I...I completely forgot."

"Well, so did I. But we've fought countless times since then and you never once asked for it. I think now, you more than deserve to have it back."

She looked at him with questioning eyes and Ryo assumed that she was urging him to continue.

"You have come a long way since that day. I used to joke about that tenacity of yours but now I've come to appreciate it and see the potential in you. You're proud, spirited and undaunted by failures. I...admire that."

Kasumi's face immediately flushed bright red and her heart began thumping wildly, not expecting such a compliment. For a moment it felt like the whole world froze and her brain was turned to mush. Seeing the sudden change in her condition brought concern to Ryo and he was about to ask if everything was okay but she set her bento box aside and got up quickly.

"You can keep it. I'll take it back when I finally defeat you. So you better watch yourself!"

She then looked down nervously and twiddled her fingers.

"And, um...thank you for the meal." she spoke softly and then scurried out of the dojo.

The Kyokugenryo master was left confused, wondering about the Todoh girl's behavior but then dismissed it thinking maybe she just needed to rush home.

After finishing his food, Ryo decided to continue with his chores and that included checking the letterbox outside the house. He flipped through each envelope to see that they were usual bills and ads which made him sigh internally and realize that he was going to need money soon if he was to continue the dojo's upkeep. He was about to continue on when he noticed there was one letter stuck to the side of the box which previously escaped his attention. He pulled it out to see that it had a stylized C within a distinctive blue seal which looked almost familiar to Ryo. He extracted the letter and began reading and when he read halfway through, his eyes widened in incredulous astonishment.

"How did I not notice this!?"

* * *

"What are you idiots doing!? Hit him!"

The voice from the gang member went futilely unheard as a powerful strike to his jaw sent him to ground unconscious. The assailant immediately dodged out of the way from the gunfire of another gang member and hurled a batarang to disarm him, he immediately followed up by closing the distance between them and knocking him out with a flying knee. Batman didn't give himself pause and immediately grabbed the tire iron swung at him from behind and launched a vicious elbow strike to the wielder's face. From there the Dark Knight effortlessly engaged from one enemy to the next in a rhythmic free-flowing fashion.

These men worked for Arnold Wesker aka The duo of the Ventriloquist and Scarface who was taking advantage of the recent power vacuum and looking to stake claim of Two-Face and Black Mask's old territories. Many tried their luck before such as the Penitente Cartel or the Lucky Hand Triad, Gotham's so called lower-tier gangs, but it seemed that the army Scarface had amassed for himself rose above them in the hierarchy.

The Batman was known for a lot of physical and mental feats but one of those which is rarely known or talked about was his ability to multitask and divide his attention, especially in situations like this where he was basically on auto-pilot and effectively handling these inexperienced thugs. And so, as he dodged a punch from another gang member, his mind went back to tonight's murder.

He had already forwarded whatever data he had to Batgirl but there was an aspect to this case he found hard to ignore. It seemed too much of a coincidence that a regular KoF Fighter would be murdered right around the same month when the Penguin will be hosting this year's right here in Gotham.

Batman frowned as he took down two more men, he didn't believe for a moment that the Penguin had gone straight as he claimed. He had been monitoring Oswald Cobblepot's activity since Two-Face and Black Mask were tried and on the surface he appeared clean except for one small detail.

Two years ago Penguin had amassed a large fortune in a short span of time, mostly originating from multiple off shore accounts, some of it obviously went towards that pet resort of his. It was definitely not the cache Dent and Silas left behind, Batman made sure to keep an eye on that too. He concluded that Cobblepot has a mystery benefactor, the questions were Who? and whether there was connection with Andy Bogard or Zanac Cybersecurity?

Up above, crouched on the edge of one of the rooftops was an individual with slicked hair with a few free strands dangling above his head and dressed in a dark blue/red ninja gi and a mask that covered the lower half of his face. He lowered the pair of binoculars from his eyes just as he finished observing Batman KO the last gang member.

"Dang. This guy's got some moves."

The ninja raised the binoculars again to see the Dark Knight standing at the center of the unconscious gang for a minute without movement until finally firing his grappling gun and disappearing behind the rows of buildings. Feeling that he had seen enough, the ninja pocketed his binoculars and rubbed his chin in thought.

"Still, shouldn't be too much of a problem to handle. Honestly, I have no idea what the boss was worried about."

"And which boss would that be?"

"GAH!"

With a startled yelp, the ninja spun towards the voice behind him only to loose his footing on the edge of the building. He would've fallen if not for his collar being roughly grabbed by someone but he was not pulled to safety and instead kept dangerously over the edge. The Ninja's eyes widened to see that the person who grabbed him was the same person he was observing just a minute ago.

"W-Where did you come from!?"

Batman didn't respond and instead got into the ninja's face gave a deadly glare.

"I'll be asking the questions here! Why are you following me!? Who sent you!?" he growled.

The ninja was person who prided himself for being fearless but he couldn't help but feel nervous about the scary white eyed visage in front of him. Still, he tried keeping his cool and cocky demeanor.

"Heh, Who said I was following you? I was just out for some air. You're the one invading my personal space! Do you know who I am, fool?!"

"I know who you are, Eiji Kisaragi."

Kisaragi gave a smug grin under his mask.

"Ah, so my reputation precedes me."

"Only as a hired thug! One of your fellow fighters from the KoF tournaments, Andy Bogard, was murdered tonight. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

Batman rasped that last bit with a slow suspicion but the response he got wasn't what he expected. Eiji's eyes widened in shock and surprise like this was news to him.

"No way! The younger Bogard is dead!?"

Batman backed off a bit but still kept his grip on the collar. Eiji's eyes were downcast as if he was processing and mulling over what he just heard but then uncharacteristically, his cheeks under his mask became rosy and he began twiddling his fingers.

"Does this mean Miss Mai is single and I have a chance with her?"

Feeling his patience thinning, Batman shook Eiji violently over the edge and leered at him threateningly.

"You didn't answer my earlier question, Why are you following me!?"

"Fuck off."

With a swipe of his right hand, Eiji threw a kind of blinding powder at Batman which forced the caped crusader to let go and shield himself. This left Eiji free falling towards the alleys below but the ninja aligned his body and kicked off the surface of the building towards a street lamp which he used to swing himself towards a fire escape. After dusting the powder off himself, Batman watched as Eiji expertly jump off various obstacles to make his way towards another rooftop and began to bound away. The Dark Knight's narrowed his eyes and then fired a grapple line towards one of the other taller structures.

After landing atop of another adjacent rooftop, Eiji looked back to see that he put some some distance between where he was and that Batman was nowhere in sight. He was convinced that the vigilante had given up pursuit and chuckled under his mask.

"Hehe, Sucker..."

But when he turned around he saw the caped vigilante in question standing right in front of him, provoking a startled cry that was embarrassingly a little high pitched.

"How the hell do you keep doing that!?"

Eiji recovered from his astonishment and then got into a fighting stance.

"Y'know what? this suits me just fine. Fighting the renowned Batman should be interesting and defeating you will make me a legend!"

Batman was still, stoic and his expression didn't change for a few seconds before he turned around and began to walk away in a dismissive fashion.

"I have no time for this. You can go flaunt your mediocre fighting style all you want outside of Gotham." he simply stated.

Eiji recoiled hard from what was said to him and blinked incredulously, trying to process the fact that he was not only snubbed but had shade thrown at him then his body began to tremble in almost comical rage as he fished out two tanto swords.

"M-Mediocre!? Nobody insults my clan! DIE!"

With that, the ninja sprang forward and readied his two swords to slash in a wild arc but Batman sensed him and parried the swords with the fin-blades on his forearms.

Eiji didn't relent and slashed again and again but each time was dodged and parried. This went on until he finally was able catch his opponent off guard with a surprise kick which sent the Dark Knight to the floor.

The ninja smiled wickedly in satisfaction and readied his tantos to deliver a killing strike when something struck the side of his head and knocked him down. He propped himself up to see the object that hit him was a black escrima stick with a certain small blue symbol on top.

"A rooftop fight with a ninja and nobody invited me? I'm hurt."

Eiji turned to see a man with medium length black hair and had his eyes concealed by a blue domino mask, with both the top and bottom ends being pointed. He wore a full black body suit with blue highlights on the knuckles and calves as well as V-shaped blue bird symbol on his chest with the wings extending all the way to his shoulders. Eiji noticed that the man exhibited a devil-may-care attitude.

"Who the hell is this now!?" he exclaimed.

The man smirked and gave a mock salute.

"Sup? Name's Nightwing."

Nightwing looked to his side to see Batman standing there without even acknowledging him which prompted the ex-Robin to roll his eyes.

"Oh, and hello to you too. I'm fine, thanks for asking." he said sarcastically.

Eiji started to get nervous looking back and forth between the two costumed vigilantes. Even with his pride, he knew he was at a severe disadvantage when facing two heroes alone.

"Aw screw this!" he finally said and threw a smoke bomb at his feet.

Batman and Nightwing were well accustomed to the use of smoke bombs and could see that Eiji barely concealed his movements, being totally visible as he leapt towards another building.

"Heh, Amateur." snickered Nightwing.

The younger hero was about to go after him when Batman intercepted him with an outstretched arm, stopping him.

"What are you doing!? He's getting..."

Nightwing trailed off as realization hit him. He then sighed with lowered shoulders and gave Bruce a knowing look.

"You put a tracer on him, didn't you?" he asked.

Batman looked back at him and didn't say anything but that was enough for Nightwing to confirm that was the case. It was why the Dark Knight purposely riled the ninja up in the first place. Nightwing shook his head chuckling.

"You really need to teach me how you do that someday. So what now? We follow him?"

At that point, the in-built radio scanner in Batman's cowl alerted him to an emergency that was broadcasted throughout the GCPD.

"Later. There's a shootout at the corner at Burnley." he stated.

Batman turned around and made his way towards the edge of the building but then paused and looked back at Nightwing.

"You coming?"

That was enough to make Nightwing grin.

**TBC**


	2. Little runaway Ninja

'Blue Mary' Ryan admitted to herself that there were a lot of similarities between Gotham and South Town, even to the point where she would consider them siblings separated at birth. But Gotham was older, colder, more uptight like a colorless victorian aristocrat compared to a gaudy 90's kid.

Still, as she sat inside one of Gotham's "characteristic" establishments while waiting for her contact to arrive, she somehow felt like she had never left home, like she was in her element. The underbelly of society was universal after all.

She had first met Detective Eric DeSoto long ago during Butch's funeral where he said that the two them were former bunk mates at the Military Academy, the connection they shared with her fallen boyfriend was enough to form a bond and since then he had remained one of her closest informants after he joined the police force. It was stroke of luck that he happened to transfer to Gotham's Major Crimes Unit much before what happened to Andy.

Mary fought against her tears and swelling emotions as she downed her second glass. Seeing Terry and the others effected by the news was just awful and it was even worse when they came by the station to identify the body. She could only imagine what Terry was going through, the man had lost so many loved ones and to now loose his own brother...she was sure he would've been broken if not for Alice's comfort.

She allowed herself a rueful smile, there was a time when she felt that she and Terry shared a little 'something' but his tragic history with women made him hesitant to act on it and Mary decided to give him all the space he needed. But then came Alice Garnet Nakata, Terry's 'No.1 Fangirl', who somehow managed to worm her way into his heart. Mary was honestly happy for them, Terry needed someone as positive and cheerful as Alice in his life.

But not even Alice could raise everyone's spirits; the worse effected by all of this was Mai. Mary felt her heart twist seeing her friend break down like that, it looked like something snapped inside of the normally playful kunoichi, turning her into completely different person.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she noticed that DeSoto had finally entered the premises and immediately took the seat next to her without a word.

"Bourbon, Straight up. It's on her." he gave his order while nodding towards her.

Mary chuckled while shaking her head incredulously.

"Well, aren't you a gentleman." she said in sarcasm.

DeSoto simply shrugged with a grin.

"I figured you owed me one by now anyway. Even back in South Town you never call me to catch-up or just shoot the breeze, it's always business with you."

Mary couldn't help but feel guilty. She always told herself that she needed to learn to maintain relationships better.

"Yeah, sorry Eric, I've been meaning to. It's just..."

"Hey, say no more." DeSoto waved in dismissal but had a look of understanding. "I understand it's personal this time."

DeSoto then pulled out a folder from his jacket but didn't hand it to Mary yet.

"We're still being stonewalled by Zanac but the results came back for the blood samples we collected."

"And?" asked Mary.

"Two profiles. The victim and an unknown male. Boys in white say he's young, possibly fifteen to twenty five."

"That narrows things down." Mary stated sardonically and frowned.

"Yeah well, just wanted to get that out of the way before the interesting part." He finally hands over the folder to her. "Now while the security feeds were fucked, we pulled footage from neighboring cams and found your friend on the scene but get this, he wasn't alone."

Mary opened the folder which had a couple of photos inside, of which she assumed were taken from ATM or Traffic cams outside the Zanac compound. Though the images were grainy and without color, she could see Andy getting out of a Taxi at the sidewalk with a young japanese boy and when she took a closer look, she immediately recognized this person.

This brought new questions to light. She was already wondering why Andy didn't contact Terry or anybody else when he returned to the States but now that it's revealed that he brought the boy with him, the whole thing became more puzzling. He might be the key to all this but the question was: Where is he right now? And if he was alright?

"The cab's license plate." She began to ask. "Have you...?"

"Tracked where they were picked up? Yeah, it's on our to-do list."

"It's on mine now. I'll head down to the cab company and work things from there."

DeSoto frowned and raised his palm at her.

"Whoa there, cowgirl! You do realize I'm putting my job on the line by sharing this with you, right? It'd make my life easier if you gave me something to work with as well."

"I already told everything I know at the station."

"Yeah but you obviously recognize this kid." He gestured to the boy in the photo. "Who is he?"

"I don't know him personally. His name is Hokutomaru, he's Andy's protege. Andy took him under his wing when he went back to Japan. Didn't think he'd bring him here."

It was the truth, everything she knew about Hokutomaru was only through Mai and her correspondence with Andy. DeSoto hmmed to himself in thought.

"Hokutomaru, huh? Dang, that's a mouthful. That puts things in perspective, though."

"Meaning?" Mary asked.

"Footage also caught the kid fleeing the scene of the crime. He's now a prime suspect."

Mary's eyes widened at this.

"What!? That's crazy!"

She may not know the young ninja in training but from what Mai has told her about him, she knew for sure he would never harm his sensei.

Mary's outburst didn't go unnoticed by the group of men by the nearby pool table. They had noticed the woman since she arrived and have been lecherously observing her since. One of them whispered something to his cohorts and they all snickered at what he had in mind.

"He matches the profile and he's last one to see the victim alive." argued DeSoto.

"You know that doesn't mean anythi-"

"There's more. The Bat thinks Bogard knew his killer, that he confronted him after the theft and things escalated from there."

"The Bat?" asked Mary with a blink. "Wait, you mean Batman? What's he got to do with this?"

Even on the streets of South Town the people were well aware of Gotham's Dark Knight and the legends surrounding him. Mary herself was fascinated with him, wanting to know about his methods and motives. She was also intrigued by what DeSoto said, she also figured that Andy knew the murderer and was curious to know how Batman came to that same conclusion.

"Apparently he and the Commish are tight so they collaborate sometimes on cases like this, unofficially that is. Not everyone is happy with the idea of the GCPD working with a masked vigilante."

"Well, Bat or no Bat, Hokutomaru is innocent and I'm gonna prove it by-"

"Ahem. 'Scuse me, Doll-face."

Mary and DeSoto glanced at the voice that interrupted them to see a man with spiky black hair who fit the visual criteria of a common hoodlum. Mary recognized him as one of the group whom she was well aware of their ogling towards her, she had ignored them till now and was annoyed that one of them had the audacity to butt-in during an important conversation.

"See, me and the other boys by the table can't concentrate on our game with you bein' so loud and all. It's kinda rude."

The man threw his thumb over his shoulder towards his friends who all have grins over their faces.

"Really?" Mary asked dryly.

The man smirked and took what she said as a cue.

"Yeah, but tell ya what..."

With a leer, he leaned towards her till his lips was near her ear, close enough for her nostrils to sting from the stench of alcohol.

"If you come with us to our place, I guarantee you can be as loud as you want." he whispered huskily.

For an added effect, he caressed her thigh which illicited a hoot of laughter from his friends.

Seeing enough, DeSoto stood up and was ready to put a stop to this.

"Buddy, I'd suggest you back off right now." he said firmly.

The man simply looked at him in annoyance.

"What are ya? Her chaperon? Buzz off, pencil-di-!"

Before he knew it, Mary twisted his hand and used the leverage to expertly fling him forward where he crashed into the pool table, both him and the table crumpled on the floor.

His cohorts reeled back from the destroyed table and then turned to the woman with fury and some gripped their cue sticks, intending to used them as weapon, readying themselves for a fight.

Mary simply gave a confident half-smile, cracked her knuckles and extended a hand towards them and then waggled her fingers towards herself. The message was clear: "Bring it."

DeSoto sighed and got ready to get into the skirmish himself, backing up Mary when she need. He would've groaned out loud if he knew how many arrests he would make today.

Had he known about Mary's opinions of Gotham, he would've agreed with her; It wasn't too different from South Town.

* * *

A pair of blue eyes, currently obscured by dark semi-rimmed shades, took in the elaborate hallway she was walking through, noting the rich oriental carpeting, decorative fixtures and the palladian window. She wasn't admiring the furnishings, she was scanning for weaknesses that could be exploited by potential intruders because that was her job.

To detract attention, Samantha Cross sometimes introduces herself as a chauffeur or an assistant but officially: she is Bruce Wayne's PPO, his bodyguard.

A tall brunette woman with her hair tied back in a tight french braid, she was introduced to Wayne by the board of directors following a kidnapping attempt four months ago. He put a huge resistance at first, trying every trick he could to get rid of her but Samantha was diligent about her work if not stubborn.

Her first month at the manor was very hard for her. She was usually not one to express emotions but Wayne made her feel a range of frustrations. He had a careless attitude and kept disappearing from her sight constantly and then reappearing hours later with some woman in his arms. She felt that this was just his way of trying to get her to quit so she stood her ground and continued to do her job.

When push finally came to shove, the two of them settled on a mutual agreement and the subsequent months after that became much easier.

"Mister Wayne?" she called out as she knocked on his room's door.

Hearing movement inside, she called out again.

"Mister Wayne, May I come in?"

"You may." came his reply from inside.

When she entered, she was greeted with the sight of a man with black hair which were short on the sides but a little longer on top that fell over his forehead, under which were blue eyes, darker than hers. He was just putting on a white shirt, exposing some parts of his chiseled upper body. She immediately felt her cheeks get hot and was glad that the shades she wore hid most of her expression.

Samantha couldn't believe that he called her in while he was changing and thought he probably did it on purpose to irk her as usual. She wasn't sure why he was able to get this kind of reaction from her, she had seen plenty of topless men before but there was something different about him in her eyes. Bruce turned his head towards her and flashed a smile that looked more genuine than the one he puts on in public.

"Morning, Samantha."

She felt the heat in her cheeks increase and averted her gaze away and coughed.

"Good Morning, Mister Wayne. I wanted to let you know that the car is waiting outside, I've already finished with the usual security sweep and urge you hurry, we have a schedule to keep."

After buttoning his shirt, he turned fully towards her chuckling while working on his cuffs.

"I told you before, you can call me 'Bruce' and I'm sure as CEO, I'm allowed to be little late."

Samantha gave a huff and Bruce anticipated another lecture coming from her. One of things that convinced him to allow Samantha being hired was her background. She enlisted at the USMC the age of 17 and even after being honorably discharged as a corporal, her military discipline remained in tact. She was a soldier ready to answer the call for duty; for her, her mission always came first and that was something he respected and could relate to as he himself was unwavering in his own personal mission.

"Mister Wayne, I have already arranged a security detail that can't be changed. We have already discussed about this. I said I would respect your private life and whatever you do inside these walls but during the day, when out in public and at work, you would let me do my job and watch over you. And that includes-"

"Do you mind doing me?"

What he said completely caught her off-guard and her face noticeably turned bright red.

"Wh-What!?" she spluttered.

Bruce held out a certain long piece of cloth in his hand.

"My tie. Honestly, I'm bad with these things and I'd ask Alfred but I wouldn't want to waste anymore time by looking for him."

In an action that Bruce admitted he found cute, Samantha lowered her shades below her eyes and looked at him in disbelief. A small part of him felt bad for unnecessarily riling her up but he would be lying if he said another small part of him wasn't enjoying this.

"You gotta be...I mean...um..Fine."

She pocketed the sunglasses and snatched the tie from his hand before draping it around his collar. As she began to quietly work on the tie, the close proximity seemed to have enhanced both their senses; the scent of each other, the sound of their breathing, the contours of their skin, all seemed more clear and vivid. While putting the finishing touches on the windsor knot, her light blue eyes met his darker ones and the two of them paused.

"You really need to stop trying to get under my skin, Mister Wayne." she said in an almost whisper.

Bruce smirked at this.

"Who said I was trying to get UNDER it?"

The implication behind what he said wasn't lost on her and so she pushed the knot hard against his neck, almost choking him.

"I'll meet you outside."

She stated this simply and then walked out of the room. She found herself grinning in satisfaction, recalling the priceless look of Bruce's face. It felt so uncanny for her, given her strict outlook.

"Ah, Good day to you, Miss Cross. Is that smile I see? You should wear it more often, it looks good on you."

Samantha turned towards the familiar british accented voice to see Alfred, Bruce's loyal butler. Out of the original two occupants of the manor, it was him who made her feel more welcome. Since coming here, she still finds it puzzling that such a large estate only housed two people, the servants tasked with manor's upkeep were barely here, it's as if Bruce lived all by his lonesome like some kind of medieval vampire.

She also learned from her first day here that the Manor was well defended. The high-tech system included motion-triggered cameras and a state-of-the-art alarm. She was glad that Bruce was at least security conscious but it also made her wonder what was she still doing here.

"Oh! um, Good morning, Mister Pennyworth." she greeted, her body going rigid.

Alfred clicked his tongue at this, she looked like she was about to salute him.

"Young miss, I've told you already formalities aren't needed here. Especially after giving us your company for four months. One would think with you being more emotionally at ease, familiarity would only be natural."

Samantha looked at the elder gentleman inquisitively.

"I don't follow. Emotionally at ease?"

"Indeed. When you first arrived, you were almost autonomous; barely expressing any emotion. I'd dare say you were as emotionally guarded as Master Bruce."

Samantha nearly scoffed at that remark, she observed Bruce almost everyday and she wouldn't exactly consider him "emotionally guarded".

"But since then, I've noticed you have opened up somewhat and become more free with your feelings, especially around the young master."

Samantha's eyes widened at this. Had she really changed since coming here? Was Bruce affecting her in some way? Now that she thought about it, she always argued with him, scolded him and behaved in a way that a normally reserved soldier from the army wouldn't!

It was very improper and she decided that she had to put a stop to it immediately, it was putting her within a line she dare not cross.

"I...I apologize if I stepped out of line. I'll be sure to maintain a professional conduct with my client. If you excuse me."

She quickly walked off, leaving a confused Alfred.

Luckily, Samantha didn't have to wait long for Bruce to meet her by the car. She found herself inspecting him for some reason, seeing him dressed in his usual office attire. She quickly snapped out of it and the held the passenger door open for him.

"Are there any security protocols in the event someone else tries to kill me with a tie?" he asked teasingly.

She didn't say anything which puzzled him but then decided to dismiss it as he took his seat.

The drive was smooth enough for Bruce to lean back and relax a bit and since it would be some time before they reach the office, he decided to use this time to mull over the events from last night.

Scarface and the Ventriloquist's gang kept him mostly busy. The escalation of their activities seemed to indicate that they were starting to feel the heat and are getting desperate. To Bruce, this was a good and a bad thing; Good because they are most likely to slip up and bad because that desperation might push them to do something worse.

The tracking device he had planted on Eiji was still active and he able to follow it to an apartment north of Park Row. He decided to hold off confronting him for the time being, figuring that perhaps he could just let the ninja lead him towards who this "boss" of his was. Besides, Eiji never takes off his gi for some reason so there will be many chances to monitor him.

Finally, regarding the Andy Bogard case, he analyzed the rubber residue he collected from the crime scene and it was just that, rubber. But it also had tiny glass fragments embedded inside. He wasn't sure what to make of it yet and it's possible that it was just random discarded junk that melted in the sun and unrelated to the crime but he'll keep a mental note of in case it becomes relevant. The police have made headway in the investigation on their end and now have a prime suspect. If this person was still in Gotham, he was sure he will find him soon but first there was another lead he needed to follow up on.

"Busy day today?"

Samantha's voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he looked towards the driver's seat with an inquiring "hmm?". He could see top quarter of her face through the rear view mirror and despite her emotions being masked by those sunglasses, he could tell that she peered back at him.

"It's just...You seem to have a lot on your mind."

He always seemed to have something on his mind, it was a side of him that Samantha saw from time to time. There were these moments when she would catch the normally aloof playboy lost in his own world and it wasn't in a dreamy, head-in-the-clouds kind of way that one would expect from him. No, it was more calculative like a king at war strategizing his next move or a scientist trying to solve an equation. Sometimes this supposed party animal looked like he had the entire weight of the world on his shoulders.

Bruce chuckled and flashed her a sheepish grin.

"I'm just dreading the mountain of paperwork waiting for me at my desk, that's all."

Samantha rolled her eyes behind the shades and blew a short breath.

"If you just showed up to work more often, you wouldn't have to." she said.

Her constant chiding was start to get on Bruce's nerves so his voice took a more serious tone this time.

"Look Samantha, I know what people think of me but I'm not going to apologize for it. I'm aware that I have my quirks and can be irresponsible but I try my best when the situation calls for it."

"I don't think you're irres..." she began but then trailed off.

"You don't think I'm what?"

She shook her head and kept her focus on the road.

"Never mind. Forget I said anything." she muttered.

Bruce furrowed his brow at the realization that something was bothering his bodyguard and decided that he would later need to talk to her privately to figure out what.

When they finally arrived at Wayne Towers, Bruce was immediately accosted by a crowd of Wayne Tech employees on his way to his office. Clearly his periodical absences has left a backlog of pending decisions and he was bombarded by questions and reports left and right.

"Please keep your distance." Samantha said firmly while trying create space between her client and the flustered employees.

"They aren't the paparazzi, Samantha. These people have been in my company for years."

"And any one of them can easily exploited and impersonated by a potential assassin." she argued back.

Bruce sighed while palming his head. He could've told them to meet him in his office but he felt he owed it his employees to take responsibility for his absence, so he calmed down his personnel and addressed their concerns one by one patiently. It was another side of him that Samantha noticed; for an eccentric guy who didn't seem to care about his company, he sure was a naturally gifted leader.

"Mister Wayne, what should we do about Kagura Enterprises?" asked Bridget, an assistant of Lucius Fox who was currently out of the country.

"Kagura Enterprises?" Bruce asked.

"Yes, they've been in correspondence with Mister Fox up until now but they still insist on having a meeting with you."

Bruce remembered Lucius mentioning about them. Kagura Enterprises, once one of the most successful business entities in Japan, have been seeking a lucrative partnership with Wayne Tech for the past year now. Bruce trusted Lucius enough to act on his behalf, iron out negotiations and take care of the technicalities but they were constantly requesting his presence in their meetings. Bruce had been putting off meeting them, mostly due to his work as Batman.

"Tell them I'll get back to them later and continue the talks with Lucius."

Bridget gulped at this.

"But Mister Wayne, we've been holding them off for the past month and a half. Their CEO has been acting very agitated and insisted that you get in touch with them."

Bruce frowned as his patience was starting to wear thin.

"And you can tell their CEO I'm a busy man and I'll meet with them whenever the hell I please." he said curtly.

"Is that so?"

Everyone turned towards the voice down the hall and Bruce froze at the spot. Approaching them was a woman around 5'6 tall wearing a sort of white dress coat with red trimmings, a high collar, pointed shoulders and long flowing sleeves like those from a kimono. At her waist was red sash with made the coat hug her curvy figure and was complimented by her black pants and double strap high heel shoes. Her face was heart shaped and framed with a pair of pearl earrings and her long black hair was pushed back with a white cloth hair band tied behind her neck.

Bruce couldn't help but take in how she walked towards him with poise and grace. When she stopped in front of him, she crossed her arms and her sharp eyes narrowed with scrutiny as she looked him over.

"So this is the world renowned Bruce Wayne? For a 'busy man', you are rarely present within your own company, as I hear it. In fact, I'm amazed that it's even functional with such truant behavior. Then again, you seem adamant in tossing responsibilities to Mister Fox which makes me wonder if your role is nothing more than a superficial figurehead." she spoke.

Samantha immediately put herself between them, already annoyed with the way woman spoke and how she simply walked inside the building without a care.

"Excuse me, who are you and what business do you have with Mister Wayne?" Samantha asked firmly.

The woman looked over Samantha with the same scrutinizing gaze but with hint more of irritation.

"My name is Chizuru Kagura, head of Kagura Enterprises. And I flew all the way from Japan to find out personally why this man continues to spurn our requests for a meeting."

Chizuru then turned towards the man in question and her eyes narrowed in disdain.

"But I can see that further inquiry or any future discussions between our firms won't be necessary. Good day."

With that she turned around and walked off towards the elevator. Everyone was stunned at the woman's behavior but then became surprised as Bruce jogged after her with Samantha trailing behind.

"Miss Kagura, wait!" he called out as he stopped the elevator doors from closing.

Chizuru looked like she was caught off-guard but then narrowed her eyes dangerously at him.

"I said I have nothing further to discuss to you, Mister Wayne; as I believe you made your stance perfectly clear." she stated icily.

"Then at least hear what I have to say on your way out." said Bruce before promptly joining her in the elevator and pressing the lobby button.

The doors closed just as Samantha reached them and her jaw slacked at the fact that her client just ditched her!

"You gotta be kidding me..." she muttered with gritted teeth.

The Wayne Tech employees decided to return to their stations and avoid their boss's bodyguard because they nervously noticed that she looked like she was about to have a meltdown and they didn't want to risk getting shot at.

Inside the elevator, Chizuru crossed her arms with a single finger tapping impatiently as she scowled at the display atop of the door which slowly counted down as they descended towards the lobby. Bruce coughed and tired to use the opportunity to clear the air between them.

"I want to apologize for what I said, I didn't mean to sound so dismissive. Truth be told, I've been sort of preoccupied as of late. That's why I let Mister Fox handle international dealings."

Chizuru sharply turned her head towards him, her earrings swaying in the process. She narrowed her eyes in that same scrutinizing way she did earlier.

"Oh really? And exactly what have you been preoccupied with? Late Night Parties? Deciding which woman to take to bed? Strutting about in the limelight?" she grilled.

He didn't have an answer. He couldn't talk about his life as Batman and what she said is partially true, his Bruce Wayne persona needed to be seen in public and his image had come with certain expectations from the upper crust of Gotham. Nevertheless, he shrugged and gave a half smile.

"Well, you calling me a figurehead isn't too far from the truth but it's also true that I put my company and my city before everything first. It's why I was at first skeptical about your firm's proposal." he explained.

At that point, the elevator reached the lobby and Chizuru marched out with Bruce matching her pace. It was near the entrance when she suddenly turned towards him with arms crossed and a brow raised in suspicion.

"Skeptical you say? Explain."

Bruce couldn't help but humorously note to himself that she looked like a school teacher reprimanding a student. Everything from the way she presented herself, the way she asserted her authority as well as the way she judged with her eyes gave the impression that the woman a strong leader who was tough as nails and it's no wonder she was able to make her company successful in the first place.

"Believe me, I get proposals from a lot of companies all the time. Some even come looking for a free hand out."

Chizuru glared at him for what he was insinuating.

"And you think my company is one of those?"

Most of the people Chizuru dealt with before would reel from her intimidation and begin to backtrack but Bruce kept his composure as he decided to be honest with her.

"The thought crossed my mind and could you blame me? Mister Fox himself told me he heard that Kagura Enterprises had fallen on tough times as of late and this deal didn't seem mutually beneficial. I believe he relayed that to you."

Chizuru placed the side of her finger over her chin in thought.

"Yes, he did." she murmured begrudgingly.

She didn't like admitting any kind of weakness but what Bruce said was true and that was one of the reasons the negotiations between their two companies seemed to drag on and on. As much as it irked her, she also admitted to herself that Wayne seemed to be aware of his company's inner workings and wasn't that much of a clueless idiot like she thought he was.

"But you surprised me today, Chizuru." Bruce said.

Chizuru didn't like that he called her by her name so freely but decided to humor him.

"In what way?"

"The fact that you came all the way here personally tells me that you're serious about this partnership. Not many CEOs would take that kind of initiative. I respect that."

She rolled her eyes and began to walk towards the building entrance, with Bruce following her.

"You give yourself too much credit, Wayne. I'm actually here for the KoF tournament as one of their sponsors. You were simply a detour on the way." she huffed.

This piqued Bruce's curiosity. He had read once that Kagura Enterprises hosted one of the previous tournaments and he wondered if she was maybe aware of the Penguin's motives, if he had any. The two were soon outside the building and Chizuru moved towards the taxi she had called for.

"Regardless, I'd like to make it up to you. To actually have a sit down. Say, maybe over dinner?" Bruce asked.

Chizuru paused and sharply turned towards him with a frown.

"Is this an attempt to add a notch on some preconceived imaginary belt of yours?" she asked almost threateningly.

Bruce chuckled and shook his head.

"Not at all. It's just business as you requested."

She pondered on the spot, she wasn't too fond of him but at the same time, she did want the partnership between their two companies to work. The strong financial backing of Wayne Tech would be all she needed to bring Kagura Enterprises back up in the ranks.

"There's restaurant called Dante's near where I'm staying. I assume you're familiar with it?" she asked.

Bruce simply nodded and she moved to get into the cab.

"8 PM, tonight. Don't keep me waiting." she stated firmly.

He grinned and gave her a thumbs up.

"You got it."

Without anything further, she seated herself and Bruce kept his eyes on the cab as it drove away.

* * *

He stood still behind her listening to the rhythmic clicks caused by her slender fingers dancing on the keyboard. All he could see in front of him was her smooth bright red hair in front of the glowing triple monitor setup she had and some video footage playing on the rightmost screen but that was enough to transfix him.

He didn't know why but he liked seeing like this, her working in her element, lost in her own world, alternating between keyboard presses and mouse clicks, and glancing from one monitor to another. He had to hold back a chuckle hearing her grunt in irritation and then later yawn. He imagined her expression right then and was sure if he walked in front of her, he would see that frown which he found adorable for some reason. Deciding to let his presence be known, he crept close enough behind her and covered her eyes.

"Guess who?"

She quickly yanked his hands away in startlement and spun her chair towards him, widening her green eyes which to him looked as vibrant as ever.

"Dick!? When did you get back?"

Dick Grayson leaned against the adjacent desk casually with a smile.

"Not too long ago. It's good to see you again, Barb."

Neither spoke for a while as the two just stared at each other, it was finally Barbara that broke the silence.

"No seriously, what are you doing here? Is Bludhaven going to be okay with you not there?"

"Bludhaven will be fine. Things have been quiet lately and besides, in case something does happen, I have someone watching over it in my absence."

Barbara immediately frowned and her face twisted in revulsion.

"Right. That Tarantula girl." she said with an icy voice.

Dick gulped and remembered the last time the two women were in the same room. Tarantula, aka Catalina Flores, is a vigilante he met in Bludhaven but unlike him, her methods were more extreme and fatal, a method he didn't approve of. But regardless, he found himself in a weird working relationship with her and even trusted her. But there were times when they found each other skirting the lines of their relationship and Batgirl, who was visiting at the time, happened to walk in during one of those moments. Needless to say, the two couldn't stand each other.

"Aaaaand changing the subject, what're you working on anyway?" asked Dick as he walked over to the right monitor and peered at the screen.

The monitor was displaying clips from previously telecasted footage of the King of Fighters tournament as well as candid footage of various fighters battling each other.

"Huh, I know you like a street brawl as much as the next guy and gal but I didn't know you were the spectating type."

Barbara rolled her eyes and gave an exasperated sigh.

"I'm not. This a project that Bruce has me working on, for that Andy Bogard case."

Dick frowned and turned towards her.

"How IS Bruce doing by the way?" he asked.

Barbara blinked at this, confused by where this question came from.

"Bruce? Well...um, he's Bruce."

"More 'Brucier' than usual?" the former Boy Wonder asked with a raised brow.

Barbara looked at him inquisitively.

"I don't THINK so. Why do you ask?"

Dick furrowed his brow and seemed lost in thought for a moment but then dismissed the whole thing with a smile and a wave of his hand.

"No reason. So this project of yours?"

Barbara didn't know what to make of Dick's strange behavior but then again, she was always aware of his tense relationship with his mentor and father figure and assumed that this was just his way of worrying.

_"Daddy issues..."_  she mused to herself.

"Okay, so Bruce thinks the person who killed Andy was not only someone whom Andy was familiar with but was also possibly another fighter who participated in past KoF tournaments."

To visually help her explanation, she rapidly tapped the keys on the keyboard and the left monitor displayed a 3D render of the crime scene with crude polygon models representing the body and surrounding objects.

"Bruce took some detailed photos and collected data from the crime scene via his cowl lenses. Based on that plus the M.E report, we've worked out a simulation of the victim's last movements."

With a tap of a key, an animation of the victim in question played. While the polygon model was rough, the movement looked accurate. Based on blood splatter, footprints and scuffle marks, the simulation depicted the victim blocking, evading and occasionally striking back.

"It's not perfect mind you but as you can see, Andy was reacting to specific strikes and blows from his opponent."

"Which seems solidify the idea that he knew who his opponent was." added Dick with a nod.

The former Robin was honestly impressed with what Bruce and Barbara were able to accomplish but then again, they were the brightest minds he knew so it was a given.

Barbara nodded back at him and then gestured towards the right monitor.

"Exactly. So I figured that if I studied the movement and fighting styles of the other KoF participants and matched them up with our victim's..."

"You'd find out who his opponent was. Good work, Barb!" Dick complimented.

Barbara sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

"I'm not sure about that. I don't have much to work with and it's going to take a while to get the data I need. The whole thing could be a waste of time and I'm starting to think I might be in over my head."

Dick seemed to mull over this for a moment and then, in a move that surprised Barbara, he dragged a tool over next to her and sat down with that familiar impish grin he always had.

"Then we better get started."

* * *

"Over there!" one of them yelled, pointing towards the fleeing boy.

With their target in sight the men gave chase, there were five of them, outnumbering the boy but he still kept evading them. He was nimble and agile like a monkey, vaulting and jumping over obstacles with ease. They had tried cutting him off and cornering him but somehow he was able to use everything in the environment and every little space to his advantage like it was natural to him.

He especially gave them trouble while bolting through a busy road, flipping over and from the hood of the cars and managing to separate the three men closer on his heels from the other two who lagged behind because of the traffic.

Throughout the pursuit, the boy intensified their frustration by taunting at them akanbe style and occasionally smacking his rear at them but eventually, when the chase brought them to a neighborhood playground, he seemed to be loosing steam and slowing down considerably as one of his pursuers as right behind him. But he wasn't done, he jump forward and pounced on the raised end of a see-saw, making the other end fly up and violently smack against the jaw of the man behind him, sending him to the ground.

"That little shit!" growled another pursuer further behind.

This was the last straw for the man and his frustration finally got the better of him as his whipped out his gun and fired! The boy cried out in pain and it seemed like he was tagged on the side of his arm. Another man, behind the one who fired, immediately grabbed at the gun in alarm.

"Are you out of your mind, Danny!? The boss says he wants the kid alive!"

"Aw Shut yer ass up, Ben! He IS alive ain't he!?"

Danny and Ben argued while the two who lagged behind finally caught up. Seeing an brief opportunity from the distraction, the boy picked himself up, ignored the burning sensation on his arm and used his good limbs to leap and climb the fire escape of a nearby apartment building. It didn't take long for the goon who was nursing his aching jaw to notice him.

"You morons! Can't ya see he's getting away again!"

Hearing their attention was back on him, the boy picked his pace and when he noticed an open window, he didn't hesitate to climb inside. Ben took note which window and floor he climbed into and grinned.

"Wait, I know this place. He's a trapped rat up there! Trent, go up the escape and follow him through the window. Rest of you guys, follow me." he ordered.

Inside that building within one of the top floors was the Sheridan residence, home of David Sheridan and his daughter Riko. It was calm inside, David was at the table reading his newspaper while Riko was lounging on the couch with a pair of headphones on, listening to that J-pop music which David didn't care for.

Sadly that calm was disrupted when the front door burst open and four men stormed inside, catching the father and daughter off-guard. Riko shrieked seeing another man climb through their window and froze seeing the intrusion in her home while her father immediately recognized the one of them.

"Ben!? What hell is meaning of this!? I already paid everything that I owed..."

Ben offhandedly socked David across the jaw and sent him to the ground.

"Shut-up!" he barked

"Dad!" cried Riko as she knelt by his side.

Ben and the others continued to rifle through the apartment, checking every corner and possible hiding spot but their search was proving to be fruitless and the frustration was beginning to mount on Ben.

"Where is he!?" he seethed.

"Where is who?" asked David, nursing his jaw.

Ben immediately turned towards the man and his daughter.

"Did you see a kid, a boy, run by here? Don't lie to me, Davey-boy!"

"I don't know what you're talking abou...!"

David was interrupted by Trent who finished his search.

"There's no sign of 'im."

"You idiot! The kid is bleeding, remember? There HAS to be a sign of him! Check everywhere!" barked Ben.

Trent turned towards the one door they had hadn't checked yet, it was closed and there wasn't any blood trail leading towards it but it seemed to be the only option left. Riko's eyes widened when she realised where he was heading.

"Whoa, hold up! That's my room! You can't just..."

But Trent already barged inside and Riko followed after him. The room was dark and messy with various manga and magazines scattered about as well as a sewing kit with a bunch of clothes pushed to one corner. But thing that grabbed Trent's attention was the walls which were adorned with nothing but posters and newspaper clippings of Batman and his partners.

"Great, a Bat fangirl." muttered Trent as he began to look under the bed.

It was while Trent was preoccupied when Riko noticed it: on the floor away from the bed was a spot of red. She approached the spot and peered at it and remembered what they said about this kid bleeding, wondering if she should point it out. But then before her eyes, a drop fell on top of it, making the spot bigger.

When Riko looked up, she quickly covered her mouth a gave a muffled shriek which caught Trent's attention but Riko immediately reacted by turning and coughing while acting innocent, making also sure to conceal the blood spot with her foot. Trent rolled his eyes and as he went to check her closet, Riko looked upwards to see him: he was clinging to the ceiling like how a ninja would, ignoring the pain and the wetness from the trailing blood on his arm. When the girl spotted him, he thought he was done for but for some reason she covered for him, he didn't know why she did it but he felt grateful for it.

Trent returned to living room to report that his search had been fruitless and Riko followed him silently before standing next to her father who had already picked himself up.

"Damn it! The boss is not going to be happy about this!" cursed Ben who kicked a chair in frustration.

In agitation, Ben turned to David and Riko and pointed at both of them.

"Neither of you saw nuthin! Our business is square Davey-boy but if I find out you've been holding out on me, I'm gonna hafta pay you another visit, got that?"

With that threat, Ben and the other four goons unceremoniously left the ransacked abode.

"Goddamn punks! Haven't they taken enough from me!?" spat David.

Riko stayed with her father to check if he was okay and luckily his jaw only smarted and nothing more. After a while she returned to her room, making sure to close the door. The boy was now sitting on the floor with his back to the wall, clutching his wounded arm. Riko turned the lights on which made him flinch and only now got a good look at him.

He looked Japanese like her, short with dark brown eyes and his hair was slicked back but pointed upwards like the crest of a cardinal or blue jay but with a distinctive cowlick. He wore a grey colored gi with the pants torn at his knees, red guards on his arms and feet, a long red scarf and what looked like a kendo stick strapped to his back.

"We better get that arm looked at." she said as she fetched a medical kit from under the bed.

As she approached him, she could see the nervousness and apprehension in his eyes.

"Don't worry about those guys." she assured. "They should be long gone by now."

The boy nodded and began to relax, convinced that the girl only wishes to help. He bowed as much as he could from his position.

"Domo Arigatou. I mean...Thank you."

"Heh, your english is pretty good." she snickered.

"My sensei taught me but I'm still not that good."

She began to work on cleaning the wound but the boy struggled and yelp as she tried to swab it with disinfectant. She first chided him, telling him to hold still and then tried to get his mind of the stinging sensation by asking him about his sensei but then dropped the subject when she saw his downcast expression.

"It's just a graze." she finally told him. "Nothing a little patch job can't fix."

"Are you a doctor?"

"Nah, but a lot of us around here know how to treat a gunshot wound which, believe it or not, is kinda mandatory."

He was inwardly bewildered that he was in such a dangerous city. His upbringing in the mountains made him unaccustomed to city life as it is, let alone one in a foreign country and he was beginning to miss his rural life in Japan already.

"So how's you get mixed up with Ben and his gang anyway?" she asked.

"Who?"

"The guys looking for you?"

Instinctively his hands drifted towards his left pocket until he consciously held it still. He may not be exactly the sharpest tool in the shed but he had a good idea why they were after him but he couldn't tell her. He fought back the tears that threatened to prick his eyes as the memories of his master's last words began to resurface and his mind was awash with anguish and confusion because he still wasn't clear on what he was supposed to do with what was given to him.

"I dunno what they want with me." he lied. "You know them?"

Riko sighed and nodded.

"My dad does. They come 'collecting' from time to time, sometimes far more than what my dad owes him. We gave them almost everything and let's just say I'm not going to college anytime soon."

He felt his insides prick with guilt, these people were being bullied at a constant basis and him coming here only made things worse for them. He gritted his teeth and clinched his fists, wishing he could do something to help them but despite his fighting abilities, he couldn't risk getting caught and he still had a promise to keep.

"Gomen, I mean sorry...about all this." he said sadly.

She shook her head and smiled.

"Don't be, you didn't do anything wrong. It could've been much worse and besides, they're just lucky that they're under Batman's radar right now."

"Bat...man?"

"You don't know?"

Riko was astonished that he was unaware of the Batman but then again, he was obviously a foreigner and seemed to be the type who wouldn't pay attention to such things so it was understandable. She pointed towards the big poster that was above her bed's headboard.

"THAT'S Batman."

The boy picked himself up and approached near the poster, with Riko following behind. He paused and looked over the intimidating figure, curious about the strange costume he wore.

"Believe me: if he was around, he would've sent those guys packing." Riko chimed.

"Is he a fighter?" he asked looking back at her.

Riko flashed a proud grin.

"Hell yeah he is! The best! He's the Dark Knight, Gotham's protector and the baddest mofo in town!"

The boy looked back at the poster with marvel and awe.

"Sugoooi...and them?" he asked while pointing at the adjacent posters which were of two similarly costumed individuals.

"They're his allies who help him out when he needs it."

She first points to the one with blue and black costume with the wing-like domino mask.

"That's Nightwing, he mostly patrols Bludhaven but he comes here sometimes." and then, with a dreamy sigh, she points to the red haired girl with the purple and black bat-themed costume with a yellow bat emblem on her chest. "And that's Batgirl, she's so awesome!"

The young ninja didn't notice how Riko's eyes sparkled and her cheeks reddened while gazing at her idol and girl-crush. Instead, he found himself becoming more fascinated and enamored by these heroes on the girl's pasted gallery.

"Sugoi! And who's that?"

He pointed to a newspaper clipping that had a candid photo of Batman accompanied by a young boy wearing a red and green costume with a R symbol on his left breast, black and yellow cape and a black mask. Riko's expression fell to a somber one at the sight of it.

"That Robin, the Boy Wonder. He was Batman's closest partner."

"Was?" the boy asked, noticing the change in her demeanor.

"Well, he's not around anymore. Some say that he grew up to become Nightwing but that can't be because that picture was taken after Nightwing showed up. Most likely...he died."

He was at a loss of words after hearing that and for while there was a period of silence between the two until he turned around and spoke.

"Hey, can I ask something,...miss...?"

He trailed off not knowing how to address her and his grasp of english failing him. Riko rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips, looking miffed.

"Oh for Pete's sake! I have a name! It's Riko."

He reeled back startled and then began to bow profusely.

"Hai! I mean, yes. M-my name is Hokotumaru."

She chuckled at his antics and even he joined her in the momentary laughter, both being glad that they were now familiar with each other.

"Riko-san, you said Batman is a protector so why isn't he protecting you?"

Riko blushed and was touched that the young ninja was showing so much concern for her. She gave a rueful smile while shaking her head before answering.

"Because he's just one guy. This city is rotten to it's core and there's only so much he can do, he's too busy going after the big fishes to worry about small fry like Ben."

Silence again fell between them until Riko moved closer towards the clipping and gazed at it.

"Come to think of it, Batman hasn't been the same without him, Robin. Sure, he has Nightwing and Batgirl but it's not the Dynamic Duo of yore. Fighting alone in the darkness, makes you loose sight of things, y'know? I think he NEEDS someone like Robin, someone to bring the light."

Hokotumaru tentatively touched at the object in his pocket as he was lost in thought. Terry and his "big sister" Mai came to his mind and he wanted to contact them but didn't know how, he didn't have a phone nor did he know how to use one but on the other hand, his master insisted that their time in Gotham was to be a secret and he wanted to honor his wishes. If this Batman was supposed to be this city's protector then perhaps he can be trustworthy.

Ideas began to form in Hokotumaru's head, ideas that honestly made him nervous but he decided he was going to follow it.

"Riko-san, do you know where I can find him?"

"Heh, if only I knew that. He'd only show if there was some REAL trouble. Why? You got something in mind?"

* * *

The interior of Dante's was pretty much like what one would expect from a five star restaurant. Surrounded by other occupied tables and the chatter of patrons, was seated Bruce and Chizuru, the former having surprisingly arrived on time.

Chizuru discovered Dante's the previous night when she arrived in Gotham and she found the classy ambiance and food much to her liking, preferring it to the restaurants at the Iceberg Grande where she was currently staying. Bruce learned all this from the conversation he had engaged with her since the two of them were seated, much to her chagrin; they were supposed to be talking business, not idle chit chat.

"I gotta ask Chizuru, Why did you insist on a meeting with me personally? Wasn't Lucius acting on my behalf enough?" Bruce finally asked.

She's still annoyed that he used her name so freely but figured it was too late to correct him. Instead, she let out a breath and looked him directly in the eye.

"I sensed you would ask me this but I suppose it's a fair enough question."

She then took a sip of her drink before continuing.

"Like yourself, I come from a powerful and influential family but that alone isn't enough in the ruthless male-dominated business world. I don't expect you of all people to understand, but I believe a ship is only as strong as the person at the helm. My firm wouldn't be what it is if not for my inner strength, foresight and my abilities to read people. Meeting you was our way of truly knowing if Wayne Industries is an ally worth having."

She expected him to be offended and outraged by her words but he wasn't. He leaned forward and interlocked his fingers as his blue eyes locked with her charcoal ones. Though she didn't show it, Chizuru felt a little nervous. It seemed like he was trying to gauge her as much as she was trying to do the same with him.

"What exactly do you mean by 'reading people'?"

Chizuru was caught a little off guard by the question, not expecting him to inquire about that of all things.

"It is as I said. Identifying who to should be allied or defeated is key to building an empire. I judge every person I meet by their being, their nature and their path. Be they client or partner, I prefer to avoid doing business with those who are weak or have sinister natures."

"And you wanted to judge and see if I was any one of those things...through just one meeting?" he asked with an amused smile.

She frowned and wasn't pleased with how he took her lightly.

"One meeting is enough. Our ways are steeped in traditions, You wouldn't understand with your western mind-set."

Bruce nonchalantly took a bite of his food and swallowed before speaking.

"What wouldn't I understand? That you're a miko from the fabled Yata clan?"

Chizuru's eyes immediately widened and her jaw dropped.

"How did you know about that!?"

"I did my homework." He said with a coy smile before taking a sip of water.

When Bruce had first heard that the King of Fighters Tournament was going to hosted in Gotham, he made it a point to find everything about it's history and the reason behind Cobblepot's sudden interest. The information wasn't obtained easily but he had acquainted himself with the background of various fighters as well as particularly the late Rugal Bernstein and the NESTS cartel. It was through this research that he had stumbled upon the legend of Orochi and the three clans who defeated and sealed it away. But honestly, that's all he thought it was: a legend.

Bruce continued to speak after gulping his water.

"But you're not just any miko, you're THE miko. Untold spiritual powers. I'm assuming the 'reading' that you do is some kind of divination, your associates are probably trained in the same way since they too insisted on meeting me."

Chizuru blinked and peered at the man in front of her. He seemed to have challenged whatever preconceived notions she had about him and couldn't help but admit to herself that she was impressed that he was able to uncover such information. But she kept her demeanor calm; just because he proved he wasn't oblivious doesn't mean she should let her guard down, in fact this revelation only indicates that he might be dangerous. She felt like the two of them were playing a game of poker, they were trying to assess the other without revealing anything and she needed to play her cards right.

"I'm surprised, Mister Wayne. I was under the impression you wouldn't believe such concepts."

Bruce simply shrugged in response.

"This is Gotham, stranger things have happened. Also, I have heard and seen things while traveling abroad. So how does it work exactly? Is it like telepathy or something?"

Chizuru shook her head, her long black hair and pearl earrings swaying slightly.

"Nothing of the sort. My attendants have their own methods but my spiritual training has allowed my inner eye to remain open and innate. Naturally, I am limited to how much I can see but appropriate duration and proximity can help with clearer visions."

"In other words?"

"The longer and closer I am to someone, the better I'll KNOW the person."

"I think that goes without saying." said Bruce with a knowing smirk.

A second later, Chizuru realized what she just said and blushed.

"I-It's nothing like that!" she protested.

Bruce chuckled at her flustered behavior and gave a good natured smile.

"Relax, I understand. I've researched much about the Yata clan and the ways of the Miko but there's something I always wondered about. Is it necessary for you to be, um...?" Bruce trailed off.

"To be what?"

"Celibate."

Her face immediately turned red at this. She narrowed her eyes and clinched her fists, her patience already beginning to thin.

"I hardly see how this topic is relevant, Mister Wayne! Need I remind you that we're supposed to be discussing business."

The woman's ire didn't seem to phase Bruce as he simply shook his head.

"I was only curious, that's all. Besides, you told me the whole point of meeting me personally was to know what kind of person I am."

It was then when Chizuru smirked with confidence and crossed her arms while giving a short chuckle.

"I've already read enough to know what kind of person you are." she said triumphantly.

"Really?" asked Bruce with a raised brow, his voice laced with doubt.

Chizuru, with her arms still crossed, closed her eyes in an almost meditative state.

"Perhaps I don't know everything about you but I feel like I know enough."

"So what DO you know about me?"

As if on cue, her eyes opened and her charcoal orbs fixed intensely on his blue ones.

"That you're not a genuine man, Mister Wayne."

Bruce looked taken aback and Chizuru held back a victorious sneer as she continued.

"This image you project of yourself as a clueless playboy is a farce. A kind of smokescreen you use to hide the real you, I don't know the reason but it's probably related to your child hood trauma."

His brows immediately arched up at this and she nodded.

"That's right, I too did my homework. And I..."

It was only for a brief moment but Bruce perceived a great pain in her eyes as she fleetingly clutched the sleeves of her coat. It certainly aroused his curiosity.

"...I would sympathize but your subsequent actions have left me in doubt. Merely a year later you disappeared and it is said that you spent the remainder of your childhood as a vagabond and then returned ten years later as a young upstart seeking to reclaim his company..."

"This is what you uncovered with your clairvoyance? Sorry if I sound belittling but this information is easily available to the public, you could've learned about that without a meeting." Bruce interrupted.

Chizuru simply nodded.

"I have but as I've said earlier, this persona you take on when you're outside your home, it's like a shield or a mask. But it's also an indulgence."

"An indulgence?" he asked with surprise.

"Every person needs some kind of comfort, some kind of pleasure, whatever the source. You never smoke nor drink, you've even ordered a bottle of vine but I see that you've barely taken a sip. But the women you've taken to bed as your playboy persona, you think it's to maintain an appearance but it's more than that. No, it's not just some physical momentary release for you, you crave intimacy."

Bruce reeled at this proclamation. He had engaged in sexual vices with various women but never gave them any thought and just assumed it was a urge to quickly satisfy, the relationships he was in never meant anything and was always intended to be temporary, plus it would be fodder for the gossip mongers who would unknowingly cement his persona. It never once occurred to him that he was craving something more. Seven years in Gotham, dealing with the horrors of murder, rape and all kinds of evil; was all that time with those women some kind of solace for him? From the slow eroding of his soul?

"You've never pursued a meaningful relationship because you're afraid to but at the same time you long to fill this void inside you but you can't because you depend on it. You depend on this...thing that you're hiding!" Chizuru clutched her sleeves and shuddered. "I sense so much violence, rage and pain. There's a great darkness inside of you...and it frightens me."

A few table away sat a lone woman who had her eyes trained on the two of them like a hawk. It felt awkward for her to be seated alone like this but her job was to watch him without drawing any attention to herself.

Samantha particularly had her eyes on that Kagura woman, checking to see if she was doing anything suspicious. Something about her bothered her and she couldn't put her finger on it. The bodyguard bit her tongue and internally chided herself, why was she getting so worked up? She had seen Bruce with plenty of other women and even seen him make out with a few (though she had to make sure they weren't carrying any concealed weapons) and wasn't bothered in the least, so why did Chizuru irk her so much?

A little voice inside her responded that maybe it was because unlike those other women, he seems to really like this one.

"Hey there."

Samantha was snapped out her thoughts and noticed a young man with brown hair standing across her at the table, he was obviously not a waiter. She became angry with herself for letting her attention wander like that and not noticing that someone approached her, such a mistake from her was unheard of.

"I couldn't help but notice you sitting here all by your lonesome which a pretty girl like you shouldn't be doing. Are you expecting somebody?" he asked, putting on his most charming grin.

She tried looking past him to keep her eyes on her client and could feel her irritation mounting because him blocking the way.

"No, I'm not expecting anyone. Can you please leave?" she said.

Confused, the man turned around and when he spotted what she trying to look at, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Oooh, wait. You're spying on Bruce Wayne and his date! Are you, like, a jealous ex-girlfriend or something?"

"No!"

She immediately bit her tongue realizing that she couldn't tell him she was a PPO, it went against the first rule of being one.

"I mean, yes! Please go away." she said quickly.

Eventually he got the message and left Samantha to her 'duties'. Resuming her watch, she noticed that both Bruce and Chizuru seemed to have ceased their conversation and ate silently with a sober atmosphere around them. She began to wonder if something had happened between them.

**TBC**


End file.
